Latest News

FIGMENT is really humming this year. We have events in more cities than ever (11 in 3 countries!), our ALPHA event was bigger and better than ever, the infrastructure and support systems we put in place for all our events are working well, and a new FIGMENT book is about to be released!

However, at the same time, we just got hit with our annual insurance bill... $32,000. This is 20% more than last year, 3x what we paid in 2014, 4x 2013, and 6x what we paid in 2012 and before. FIGMENT is growing, but by 5-10% a year. We're built to keep scaling, but not if our insurance and other costs go up so much faster than we're growing.

We're excited to announce that the treehouse will return this summer as part of FIGMENT NYC's 10th Anniversary celebration!

Benjamin Jones, original artist of the famous FIGMENT NYC Treehouse, retired his original design at the end of the 2015 season, and now a group of architecture students have envisioned an entirely new design that will debut this summer at the 2016 FIGMENT NYC event.

Join Us!

A distinguished jury has selected the winning design in the sixth annual City of Dreams Pavilion Competition:

Hanger Barn by Folio (Youngsu Lee and Bosuk Hur).

Hanger Barn Rendering by Folio

Pending approvals and fundraising, this temporary art structure will be assembled on Governors Island and open to the public for the summer 2016 season.

The annual competition is hosted by FIGMENT, the Emerging New York Architects Committee (ENYA) of the American Institute of Architects New York Chapter (AIANY), and the Structural Engineers Association of New York (SEAoNY). The City of Dreams Pavilion, so named for its focus on the future of a world that faces strains on both economic and natural resources, aims to promote sustainability-oriented thinking amidst the architecture and design communities. The competition requires designers to consider the environmental impact of their designs in everything from materials sourcing to disposal (or ideally reuse) of waste at the end of the season.

Folio promises to construct the 2016 pavilion, Hanger Barn, out of used wire coat hangers sourced from dry cleaning facilities and other places of reuse around the city. Jury member Benjamin Jones, designer of the FIGMENT Treehouse that has appeared on Governors Island for the last five summers, says he’s excited because, “It takes something entirely non-structural and makes a structure out of it.”

Folio’s proposal for the Hanger Barn turns recycled clothes hangers into a pavilion using modular design techniques. It also creates the illusion of motion due to the placement of the hangers in fractal patterns, which create shadow effects on the ground below that change with the movement of the sun. The modular design is composed of the hanger’s original triangle shape, rotated and paired with mirrored segments that connect with zip ties. The intention is for the materials to be reused after disassembly at various sites around New York City.

Folio will work with FIGMENT, ENYA, SEAoNY, and Governors Island to select the exact site for Hanger Barn, refine the design, obtain necessary approvals, and fabricate and install the pavilion on the island.

FIGMENT is accepting tax-deductible donations to support the fabrication, installation, and maintenance of the pavilion on Governors Island for the 2016 summer season. Donations can be made by following the link here: http://www.figmentproject.org/donate. The project will likely also be launching its own funding campaign.

FIGMENT NYC hosts a number of summer-long programs on NYC's Governors Island. From June through September you will find these wildly creative, original exhibitions on the island. They are all FREE for the public to enjoy and interact with while the island is open. We are currently accepting submissions from artists who want to participate in these exciting programs in 2016.

The Pavilion is a gathering place, a site for people to learn about the arts programs on the island, enjoy performances and lectures in the shade, and interact with the historic context of Governors Island.

FIGMENT teams with the Emerging New York Architects Committee (ENYA) of the American Institute of Architects NY Chapter (AIANY) and the Structural Engineers Association of New York (SEAoNY) to host this annual competition. The challenge: design and construct a temporary pavilion on Governors Island that meets the criteria outlined here.

We ask entrants to consider how to construct a temporary structure efficiently and sustainably—to create a pavilion that has net zero impact and serves as a prototype for a new, truly sustainable approach to design and construction. Entries are encouraged from individuals or teams of architects or non-architects of any age or experience level, provided they are prepared to carry out the project.

These eye-catching structures are always highlights of the FIGMENT NYC season, and the 2016 contest winner will be our 6th Pavilion!

Don't Let the fun stop when that last ferry docks! Come to the historical Hideout Bar inside Fraunces Tavern TONIGHT for the official FIGMENT NYC afterparty. Help us celebrate a successful 9th annual FIGMENT, meet your fellow participants and artists, and let loose!

Happy Hour drink prices from 5-9pm. Enter on Broad st and Water st, just one block from the Governors Island ferry! Everyone is welcome.

This Saturday and Sunday, June 6th and 7th, join us on Governor's Island for our 9th annual FIGMENT NYC Weekend Festival! It marks the opening of the 2015 summer season, which includes some nifty season-long programs. This weekend's event runs 10am-6pm both days, and as always is FREE. Here is information about how to get there, including a ferry schedule.

Also, BIG NEWS! For the first time ever the FIGMENT app is live for Android! The 2015 information is up to date in the iPhone app as well. Download these free apps and have an instant pocket reference for your visit.

And, if you love FIGMENT and want to support us, it's not too late to volunteer! We need help Friday-Monday this week and can always use a few more hands with everything from building and painting to greeting people as they arrive from the ferry. Fill out this form and one of our hardworking volunteer coordinators will be in touch to schedule you for a shift.

As an entirely volunteer-run event, FIGMENT NYC is people-powered by folks just like you. We NEED your help! Whether you have a few hours, a few days, or want to become part of the team that makes FIGMENT NYC happen year-round, we hope you'll consider giving some time to this incredible event.

Now that the FIGMENT NYC weekend is closing in, there are opportunities to help every day!

If you want to come out and lend a hand this week fill out this formwith your availability, skills, and interests and we'll connect you with a project that can use your help.

The FAST (Figment Art Support Team) volunteers are the team that works directly with our curators and artists during the weekend festival. We're looking for a few more friendly faces to handle tasks like artist check-in at Headquarters, roaming with curators to check on artists all over the island, and generally making the artists' experience more pleasant. If you have wondered what it's like to be one of our curators or even considered joining the team, this is a good place to start. Contact Lisa at lisamichelle@figmentproject.org to get more information or to sign up!

For 2015, the City of Dreams Committee selected TWO winners: Organic Growth by Izaskun Chinchilla Architects and Billion Oyster by BANG Studio. The Pavilions are being built in many stages on and off the island, all of which need helping hands along the way. Below find the volunteer sign-up forms for each individual pavilion. The links also have info about schedules of work calls and descriptions of the tasks needed. For more general info about these incredible works of art, click here.

Our F&C team will be on the Island every Friday in May as well as some other dates TBA. Fill out this sign-up form if you are interested; we are particularly looking for volunteers who have at least a little experience with (or a lot of enthusiasm for learning) construction skills!

The structure is built, and now we need people who want to paint! Contact treehouse@figmentproject.org to sign up, and also fill out our general treehouse volunteer form to keep up to date with future volunteer opportunities!

The curators of FIGMENT NYC invite proposals for interactive art of all mediums. Interactive, or participatory, art blurs the lines between the artist, the art, and the people engaging with the art. We look for projects that encourage people to play, dance, sing, create, engage, experiment, and explore their environment. Theatre, dance, music, performance art, games, creative costuming, workshops, activities, three-dimensional sculptural installations are all common genres found at FIGMENT.

FIGMENT NYC

June 23-24, 2018

FIGMENT is a free participatory arts event that celebrates creativity by challenging artists and participants to find new ways to create, share, and dream. FIGMENT NYC will take place on Governors Island.

FIGMENT is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization entirely funded by grants and individual donations. FIGMENT accepts no corporate sponsorship of any kind. FIGMENT is supported by public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts. FIGMENT is held in multiple cities across the US and beyond.

FIGMENT NYC is supported by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council, as well as by the Fund for Creative Communities, supported by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo, the New York State Legislature and administered by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, as well as the Friends of Governors Island, as well as NYC & Company Foundation.